By Indykids Staff
Name: Arlene Joyce Soriano
Age: 10
Home: Manila, Philippines in a neighborhood called Buayang Bato or “Crocodile Stone”
Language: Tagalog and English
Religion: Catholic
Favorite subject in school: English and Science
Favorite food: Ginataang kalabasa (sweet potato stewed in coconut milk)
Living situation: Arlene lives with nine other people: her mother, uncle, two aunts, three cousins, grandma and grandpa
Parent’s work: Arlene’s mother is a life insurance agent
Favorite hobby: Playing with younger cousins
What do you want to be when you grow up?: A doctor
What would you like to say to kids in the United States?: “Study hard so you can learn. Life here in the Philippines can be very hard because we don’t have a lot of money for food or extra things.”
Did You Know?
The U.S. won the Philippines in the Philippine American War (1898-1902). Filipinos didn’t want to be a U.S. colony* so they resisted. More than one million Filipinos died in the war.
The Philippines officially became an independent country in 1946.
The Philippines is very poor. 88% of the people live in poverty.
Today many Filipinos consider the Philippines to be a “semi-colony” of the U.S. because of U.S. influence in Philippine government, military, media and education.
Can you think of other parts of the world that are U.S. colonies or “semi-colonies”?
*A Colony is a region politically controlled by a distant country
Learn a little Tagalog
Good morning: Magandang umaga
How are you?: Kumusta ka?
How old are you?: Ilan taon ka na?
Dog: Aso
Cat: Pusa
Human rights: Karapatan pangtao
Bye!: Sige!
Its good as your other articles : D, thankyou for posting . “The real hero is always a hero by mistake he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else.” by Umberto Eco.